Dems Souring On Dem Candidate They DON’T Support

The AP published an article yesterday asserting that the longer this nasty democratic primary season continues, the more democrats sour on the opponent they do not support. Meaning Obama supporters are less and less inclined to vote for Hillary should she get the nomination and will probably stay home on November 5. And Hillary supporters are more and more likely to vote for McCain should Barack get the nomination.

It makes sense to me. One should never say never, but Hillary lost my vote the second she said she and McCain both had lifetimes of experience and Obama just had a speech. If she weren’t hypocritical enough, her campaign later attacked Obama when he said he thought McCain would be a better president than Bush. The list of reasons the first serious female presidential candidate won’t get my vote has grown long and detailed since January. How disappointing when I was giving her much consideration before she showed her true colors.

Obama hasn’t secured my vote, but if Hillary gets the nomination, I’m definitely voting for Nader. She has serious character deficiencies and I fail to see how anyone could think someone of her uncontrollable political ambition would make an appropriate leader for this country. Especially when our current leader and his underlings are so ethically challenged, it has led to disaster here and around the world.

The problem with Obama is that he is not offering solutions. His speeches are full of slogans and rhetoric. While on the campaign trail, clips of his speeches never show him giving solid proposals, specific campaign promises. Now, anyone who paid attention in 2000 knows Bush and Cheney didn’t give a rat’s ass about his campaign promises. Once they got to 1600 Pennsylvania, they did whatever the hell they wanted and made sure Congressional members knew it.

It is clear Obama did not intend to run for president so soon after becoming a U.S. senator. The democratic passions swept him up after 2004 as their new Kennedy - their new mascot and savior. The problem is, Obama has not proven through the course of this campaign that he is little more than a shell of a candidate prioritizing oratory skills over soluble ideas and substantive pledges. We need to hear more about housing foreclosures, the credit bubble bursting, the student loan crisis, Iran, oil prices. He needs to talk about balancing the Supreme Court and alternative fuel sources and food prices. Discuss the ridiculous amount of money going to defense contractors rather than arming our military appropriately and actually finding bin Laden. Public schools are a mess, prisons are overcrowded and we’re wrecking the environment. We haven’t heard about Putin or Russia’s growing influence. April was the most deadly month for U.S. troops since September.

When he’s on the national stage and not at a debate, all we hear is about how he wants to change Washington. First of all, I seriously doubt his ability to change Washington. Secondly, he’s friendly with a lot of lobbyists. So, that whole “change” thing is in question.

I am hopeful, but not that hopeful. Yes, Obama has had to address the whole Wright-thing over and over and I’m sooo over it. It really doesn’t interest me that much and is such a side-issue that shouldn’t be an overarching consideration in this primary. Obama has been off-point. But even when he’s on-point, he’s not talking about issues enough to knock Hillary off her soap-box.

At this point, all I know is that I’m against McCain. But, I’m not really for anybody.

Tax Evasion Worse Than Murdering/Torturing Dogs

Michael Vick was sentenced to 23 months for charges related to helping dogs attack each other, killing dogs, and treating dogs inhumanely over and over again.

Wesley Snipes was just sentenced to 3 years for not filing his taxes 3 years in a row.

Um…Does anyone else feel like blowing chunks over the fact that the government cares more about sucking a few million bucks cash (as if it will matter when the national debt is almost $10 trillion) from a celebrity than deterring people from carrying out vicious savagery against man’s best friend?

A lot of somebodies somewhere need a come-to-jesus meetin’. This is sickeningly ridiculous.

Screw The White Working Class

David Axelrod took the words right out of my mouth. According to The Huffington Post, David Axelrod told NPR 4/23, “The white working class has gone to the Republican nominee for many elections, going back even to the Clinton years.”

All day yesterday, as I’m hearing the news stations ask over and over, “Why can’t Obama close the deal? Why can’t Obama close the deal?”, it became even clearer that mainstream media has once again donned the dumbass cap and can’t see the forest for the trees. Again.

You can spin the Pennsylvania results however you like. Hillary won by 10 percent, giving her divine right to continue in the primary and torture the democrat electorate with her negative campaigning and hypocritical criticisms. Obama, however, had been behind in the polls 30 percent when the race for Penn. started and managed to close the gap some 20 percent while being forced off message by the Wright bullshit and Bittergate. Take your pick. They’re both right and irrelevant.

The only guarantee we have is that the race will continue on its U-G-L-Y, YOU AIN’T GOT NO ALIBI, YOU UGLY, YOU UGLY, YO MOMMA SAY YOU UGLY course. Hillary effectively paralyzes Obama when she attacks him and he still has not been able to reach the “everyday man” with specific policies that will better the lives of the lower-middle, white working class.

So, the white working class stays with Hillary. Just like they did in Pennsylvania and possibly will in Indiana and definitely will in Kentucky. The silly white working class! Gotta love ‘em! Right?

Give me a freaking break! Let’s talk about these white working class. They’re the ones who picked Bush. They’re the ones who picked Bush AGAIN. They’ll probably head over McCain’s direction in the general ANYWAY.

I say screw ‘em! They’ve jacked this country up enough. Why don’t we let the educated, young people who will inherit this nation decide this presidency. We’re the ones who are entering the workplace and finding decent salaries and ethical treatment and good management sacrificed in the name of the almighty dollar by the whores who went before us. We’re the ones who will die from black lung as unfair trade with China and others vastly increases pollution in the U.S. because we’re not holding them to our same environmental standards as we hold our own factories. We’re the ones who see inflation, commodity prices, and housing prices double and triple while pay rates go down. Congress has given themselves what, eight?, pay-raises since the last time they increased minimum wage. Thanks, whitey.

You can thank the white working class for giving Bush the free pass to continue Iraq with failed polices. You can thank the white working class for prejudicial Constitutional Amendments across the country against gay marriage. Amendments that would make founding fathers cringe. You can thank the white working class for continued government support for abstinence-only programs that have never proven to be effective and are possibly harmful. You can thank the white working class for ensuring that semi-automatic weapons and other needless, non-hunting fire-arms stay on the street and continue to wreak havoc in poor neighborhoods with ever-spreading tentacles.

I say it’s time the white working class stepped aside and retire their failed philosophies. We are worse as a nation - and as a world - than we were eight years ago. And, you know what I think, peeps? It’s only going to get worser. Especially in the last 270 days of the Bush presidency. Especially if McCain is elected president. They the white working class is truly insane if for no other reason than they keep doing the same thing over and over and expecting things to change or improve. Talk about tyranny of the masses - or, at least, the majority. The rest of us suffer because of their inadequate critical analysis and decision-making.

Forget political correctness. The white working class as a demographic, as an electorate, and as a decider has failed themselves and failed the rest us.

Let us pick this one, White Working Class, and I bet your life will improve. The Republicans have tricked you into thinking they’re looking out for your best interests by holding poor people accountable for their poorness. They haven’t. They’ve just ceded power to the multi-billion dollar corporations in exchange for campaign contributions and free golf games while your kids go without health care. It’s not your fault. You didn’t know. But if the reprehensible actions of Bush and Cheney and a whole slew of Congressional members haven’t taught you anything, I don’t know what will. You’re losing your homes. You can’t afford your medicine. You’re overweight and unhappy. Well, take a seat. Sit back. Put the Depends on. And give the rest of us a chance to right your wrongs.

And OBAMA - for CHRISSAKES - start giving specific examples of policy you will enact instead of simply saying You’re Going To Change Washington. We’ve heard that shit over and over before. We want specifics and we want them now. Definable, tangible solutions. Not generalities. Not campaign rhetoric. It’s time to get with the g.d. program. And if you lose Indiana, so help me, I’m voting for Nader!

Top 10 Reasons Obama Won’t Be Dem. Nominee

FINALLY! The Pennsylvania primary is here - replete with the guilty pleasure of leaving the TV on MSNBC with political interview after political interview. At some point today, I promise I will get up and do something productive.

It’s been long and hard, with bouts of drama threatening to change the landscape of the democratic contest, yet never effectively squelching Obamamania. We’ve had some good times. The replay of the Bosnia clips, illustrating Hillary’s lack of respect for the truth was particularly gratifying. The Jeremiah Wright issue gave me pause - not because he said “Goddamn America” and everyone reacted as if criticizing our country is equivalent to treason - but because I question whether Obama truly believes Jesus is his lord and savior and the rest of us are going to hell. I’d put money that his “Christianity” is more a tool in his arsenal to accomplish civil and political goals. That gives me pause.

And the bitter comments, accusing xenophobic country bumpkins of clinging to guns and religion was a double-edged sword. I appreciated the comments because I agree with them in their totality. The reaction among progressive people, including Hillary Clinton, was disappointing as they attempted to assuage those who found themselves described in Obama’s comments. Not every American is beautiful and patriotic and hardworking and wonderful because they were born here. The voters tend to be caricatured more than the candidates among all the analysis. I hate that “And I’m Proud to be an American, Where at Least I Know I’m Free” song. Gag! Does that make me a fascist? Hell no! It means I have good taste in music.

Now we’ve reached April 22. Earth Day. My nephew’s birthday (shout out, Stuart!). And Pennsylvania Primary Day. I think, and I’m no Nostradamus, that it doesn’t take a genius to figure out that Hillary will probably win the Pennsylvania Primary, but Obama will win the overall Democratic nomination. At this point, only untold, unforeseen circumstances could prevent Obama playing the lead role come the August convention in Denver.

I’ve decided to compile a top 10 list of reasons Obama might not be on that stage:

10. Hillary challenges Obama to a shot contest and drinks him under the table, putting in question his testicular fortitude.

9. Bush endorses Obama, gives him a meaningless medal of something.

8. A plague of biblical proportions of hanging chads besets the polling stations in Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Indiana.

7. Hillary reveals she has the supernatural ability to pee oil.

6. The Clinton campaign gets a hold of pics of Obama picking his nose. I mean really digging, because if there’s only slight entry, it doesn’t count.

5. Ron Paul conspiracy theorists link a paper Obama wrote in 6th grade to 9/11.

4. Karl Rove and his Fox goons burn the Pepsi Center down. Then Obama will have to accept the nomination somewhere else.

3. Obama tries to play more white-man sports on camera. Like shuffleboard or badminton.

2. Bill Clinton promises to wear a dress at Hillary’s inauguration if she’s elected.

1. Hillary Clinton is drugged with a truth serum and admits, “I’m a liar. I lie all the time. My phone number is 1-800-LIE-A-LOT. You can visit my website at www-dot-liesallthetime-dot-com. Lying is my life. Paging Doctor Von Liarhausen! Oh wait - That’s me!” (oh wait, this works IN Obama’s favor. good)

Reflective System vs. Automatic System

In the short time I’ve been plunged into adulthood (not maturity, mind you), I have observed with endless curiosity the different consciences with which my peers traverse the days and weeks that bring us ever closer to death. It seems as if some of us are more existential, pondering happiness and the meaning of life and various philosophies. We psychoanalyze our past and present, decision-making and those of our friends, acquaintances and family. We are constantly thinking and considering and struggling to find our most productive and positive place in the universe. It can be tiring and half the time I feel like a dog chasing its own tail.

Others are bit more shallow. And I’m not saying that as an insult; it’s simply the best descriptive adjective for the coasting along the status quo I’ve noticed in the lives of many of my peers. Many people simply find a job, get married, and have kids without ever a thought given to trailblazing or creating a masterpiece with this life they’ve been given. They do not question that with which they were raised: religion, fried foods, political parties.  Many do not move away from home or go to college or vote or ever engage in deep thought and discussion and debate.

I do not think I’m better than these people - merely different. It is just so interesting that some of us mentally and spiritually exist always questioning and analyzing and seeking. Others are content as is. It’s CRAZY, people!

And, what’s every crazier, is the Freakonomics blog interviewing Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein, authors of Nudge, Improving Decisions on Health, Wealth, and Happiness. My jaw nearly dropped when I read this question and answer section:

“Q: You write that human brains function either on their more deliberate and self-conscious Reflective System or their intuitive, rapid Automatic System (Homer Simpson), and that voters seem to primarily rely on the latter. (So much so that it’s possible to predict the outcome of elections by testing automatic responses.) Can you make any predictions about the presidential election based on which candidate has more “automatic appeal?”

A: We are betting on the guy from Illinois — the one who used to teach at the University of Chicago Law School. Admittedly, we might be biased, but we have seen first hand the way people immediately relate to him, and that should help.

Also, it is important not to push this evidence too far. Although initial impressions are important, certainly many voters do use their reflective systems to consider each of the candidates with care. We think the country is lucky to have three smart candidates who can give voters plenty to think about.”

Perhaps I’m reading into this text way too much or focusing on some obscure point, but I just feel so relieved that others have noticed the difference in people’s cognitive behavior and have even given it a term: Reflective System vs. Automatic System. I just wish I knew why some choose to reflection while others simply function without much ado.

Perhaps I’m being too reflective about Reflective System. More times than I’d like, I find myself wishing for a more Automatic life - but then would this existence be as flavorful? Would it matter at all? Would chocolate still taste as good?

No wonder I drink so much.

ABC 4/16 Democratic Debate: An Exercise In Absurdity

Who caught last night’s debate on ABC? If you did, you are probably feeling like I am this morning, thinking I’ll never get those ?@#! 90 minutes of my life back. My sentiments are loudly being echoed across morning cable news, the blogs, commentary and news websites. Let’s just say that Democratic peeps are angry this morning.

As well they should be.

Charlie Gibson and George Stephanopolous didn’t what I would call “moderate” the debate. It’s more like they TMZed the debate, avoiding important, substantive topics that will actually factor in the candidate’s abilities to govern the nation. Instead, all the “manufactured issues” - as Barack delightfully refers to them - were hurled again and again at BO and HRC in a clear effort to humiliate them, catch them off guard, or somehow lead them into a gaffe that will be played on loop across all media in the Western Hemisphere until the Pennsylvania primary. It was disgusting - like they were political paparazzi. If it wasn’t for the wonderful distraction of Top Chef airing a few minutes afterward, I would have finished that bottle of Chianti in an effort to dull the shock and awe of the evening.

Let me also bring up the fact that George Stephanopolous worked for the Clintons. Closely. For a long time. And while, he wrote a tell-all after his departure, doesn’t his previous employment kinda serve as a conflict of interest? I know we’re all adults here, but I thought that was in poor taste. And for me to say something is in poor taste is really hanging it out there. Plus, Charlie Gibson is very capable of shaming ABC’s reputation on his own.

I think the first time I actually stopped and said, I cannot believe they are asking these types of questions was when Georgie asked of Obama, “Do you think Reverend Wright loves America as much as you do?” Now, if that’s not the most fucking retarded question a moderator can ask of a presidential candidate who has very good chances of actually ending up in The White House, I don’t what is. Perhaps the boxers vs. briefs inquiry Bill Clinton received in 1992 can compete, but that was on MTV. By a kid. This was George Stephalopolous. On ABC.

The debate continued on, unhindered by much relevant discussion on topics with which the next president will grapple. Lightly touched were gas prices and the economy and the Iraq War and education, but that generally happened when the candidate could steer their answer away from some idiotic question about bitterness and Bosnia.

Furthermore, all the analysts this morning are talking about how poorly Obama did or how Clinton won the debate. Which is odd when every poll I’ve seen indicates the majority of those polled think Obama won the debate. HRC quickly jumped on the attack wagon whenever the moderators brought up a “manufactured issue” against Obama, including the whole William Ayers topic (read Obama’s bio, people - if for no other reason than he will probably be the next president of the US). Obama repeatedly defended HRC right along with himself, saying the two are speaking a lot and campaigning hard and of course there will be some verbal missteps.

I thought he handled the issues well and was genuinely surprised to see all the negative reaction the analysts were having today. I think that largely stems from their desire to see a beat-down and want Obama to get in there an mud-wrestle Hillary and his unwillingness to stoop was disappointing to them. To the rest of us “every day” folk who can see the forest for the trees, he did well and we like that he’s not treating the primary like a bar-room brawl. That’s why all the polls are showing people thought HE won. These anal-ysts need to take a few or go on vacation. Out of touch doesn’t even describe it anymore.

Lastly, and this point really has nothing to do with the debate, but Charlie Gibson said he was sure every American said a prayer for Virginia Tech as it was the anniversary of last year’s massacre. Not a big deal. However, in an effort to please the masses and ensure rating, news organizations are forgetting on a large scale, that over 20 million Americans are atheist or agnostic. We don’t run around waving flags and brainwashing new recruits or sending disciples to tithe to our organization or they’re going to hell. We’re not organized. That’s the whole point. I would also almost guarantee that there are quite a few more closet atheists and agnostics who fear repudiation and being ostracized from their family and community where they to admit their disbelief.

I remembered Virginia Tech and held the deceased in my heart for a moment. I did not pray. The sentiment that “every American said a prayer”, while not wholly offensive, is indicative of an ignorance that atheists and agnostics are the fastest-growing sector in the faith, or lack-thereof, segment of our society. Most atheists and agnostics are educated and watch debates and watch news and are growing disgusted more and more with the assumption that everyone is Christian, a sentiment which IS offensive to A LOT of people.

I understand news organizations need to appeal the masses and already-brainwashed group-thinkers are more likely to buy the products advertised during the commercials. I would advise news organizations (especially CNN), however, in their efforts to dumb-down their programming, to remember that some of us have progressed beyond the culture of fear that our afterlife is determined by faith in the words of men from long ago who sought to control the masses and succeeded beyond their wildest imaginations. It is embarrassing and appalling to watch, so I will continue to garner the majority of my information from the Internet - which I suppose is what we should all do anyway.

In the meantime, we can only watch as humanity progresses, some more slowly than others - as demonstrated by mainstream news organizations, Charlie Gibson and George Stephanopolous.

Meredith VETO: “Dead Wrong”

I LOVE Bill Maher’s “New Rules” segment on his HBO show. I’m pretty sure he has an army of clever little writers continuously hopped up on coffee who largely get off by making each other laugh. I can totally relate.

The segment is so good, in fact, Maher’s “New Rules” book was a smash. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, here are a few Rules from his website:

New Rule: Whenever you combine a secretive compound, religion and weirdos in pioneer outfits, there’s going to be some child-f*cking going on. In fact, whenever a cult leader sets himself up as “God’s infallible wing man” here on earth, lock away the kids.

New Rule: If I’m paying four bucks a gallon for gas, that TV in the pump has to show porn. This way, I’m not the only one at the pump taking it in the ass.

New Rule: If you’re in college and not drinking beer, you’re doing it wrong. Students at Utah State have taken to playing the drinking game, Beer Pong. With root beer! Instead of beer, root beer! And instead of laughing and partying and trying to get laid, everybody wishes they were dead. Hey, Mormons, if you’re going to ask kids to believe in magic underpants and posthumous baptism, don’t you kind of want to get ‘em half in the bag first?

New Rule: Politicians must stop saying, “The American people are smarter than that.” No, they aren’t. If the Bush era has taught us anything, it’s that voters want a president carved from their own image. [photo of Bush making funny face] Someone who doesn’t like to read will believe anything he’s told, and is easily distracted by bright, shiny objects.

God, I could read those all day. Funny shite.

Well, as any intelligent American who watches the news coverage of our domestic and international goings on, I find certain things - words, phrases, behaviors, tendencies - drive me to the edge of reason and make me want bitch slap many of those who brave the bright lights and big lenses, exposing their idiocy for all the world to see.

No, I will not sit quietly as lawmakers, pundits, commentators, reporters, strategists, surrogates and the rest of the incestuous family of our political culture parade one ignominious annoyance after another. I veto those annoyances. In the same vein that Bill Maher erects rules, I shall have the veto.

That’s right, Meredith’s VETO, biotch.

And for my first VETO, I ban the use of the phrase “dead wrong.”

Examples of use:

Joe Biden: “There was no confirmed connection or even serious connection between Al Qaeda and Saddam, two things the vice president continued to push and continues to push which were flat dead wrong then, flat dead wrong now.”

Dick Cheney: “With respect to the charge about the president, I just think it’s dead wrong. I’ve gotten to know this man very well. I work side-by-side with him every day, seven days a week, you know, 24/7, as they say. He has a great capability that I think is absolutely essential in an effective leader, and that’s the ability to cut to the heart of the issue.”

And it’s been around a long time -

G.H.W. Bush, SOTU 1991: “But the world had to wonder what the dictator of Iraq is thinking. If he thinks that by targeting innocent civilians in Israel and Saudi Arabia, that he will gain advantage, he is dead wrong. If he thinks that he will advance his cause through tragic and despicable environmental terrorism, he is dead wrong. And if he thinks that by abusing the coalition prisoners of war he will benefit, he is dead wrong.”

Simply because one decides to use “dead” as an adjective that describes the adjective “wrong” doesn’t make the “wrong” any wronger. Same rule applies when you use “flat” in front of “dead” and “wrong.”

It’s not just politicians flinging “dead wrong” around, either - I’ve heard David Gregory recently use it and Tim Russert has bandied it about as well.

Politicians, if you use the phrase “dead wrong,” it doesn’t make you more right. It doesn’t make you the expert or your certainty warranted. It only reveals your asinine inability to prove your opinions with facts, forcing you to resort to meaningless sensationalist hyperbole and annoy those of us who fall victim to your airtime.

Why don’t you try:

I don’t agree with him.

He’s full of shit.

He’s an asshat.

His mother was whore.

The use of any of these substitutionary phrases in lieu of “dead wrong” would keep my interest and increase your stock of credibility with many of us voters and television watchers looking for someone to just speak from the heart.

Just my humble veto. The first of many.

Prosecuting the Bush Administration

This morning is a beautiful morning, if a little chilly. And it only improved when I clicked on The Huffington Post and read the headline “Obama Would ‘Immediately Review’ Potential Of Crimes In Bush White House.”

The HuffPo basically provided an excerpt from The Philadelphia Daily News’ Will Bunch’s Attywood column in which Obama said:

What I would want to do is to have my Justice Department and my Attorney General immediately review the information that’s already there and to find out are there inquiries that need to be pursued. I can’t prejudge that because we don’t have access to all the material right now. I think that you are right, if crimes have been committed, they should be investigated. You’re also right that I would not want my first term consumed by what was perceived on the part of Republicans as a partisan witch hunt because I think we’ve got too many problems we’ve got to solve.

So this is an area where I would want to exercise judgment — I would want to find out directly from my Attorney General — having pursued, having looked at what’s out there right now — are there possibilities of genuine crimes as opposed to really bad policies. And I think it’s important– one of the things we’ve got to figure out in our political culture generally is distinguishing betyween really dumb policies and policies that rise to the level of criminal activity. You know, I often get questions about impeachment at town hall meetings and I’ve said that is not something I think would be fruitful to pursue because I think that impeachment is something that should be reserved for exceptional circumstances. Now, if I found out that there were high officials who knowingly, consciously broke existing laws, engaged in coverups of those crimes with knowledge forefront, then I think a basic principle of our Constitution is nobody above the law — and I think that’s roughly how I would look at it.

Now, there have been plenty of crimes committed by the Bush administration, whether it was illegal domestic spying, no-bid contract assignment in Iraq, torture, the illegal destruction of mountains of documentation and more. It would give me untold satisfaction if Congress or the next administration conducted effective investigations of the goings-on under Bush, Cheney and Rumsfeld. I have little faith that such investigations will proceed as most politicians are in the re-election business and obviously care more about the preservation of their careers than carrying out their fundamental duties as lawmakers and designated check-and-balancers.

Furthermore, I have not allotted my general election vote as of yet and am seriously considering marking the box next to Nader’s name. If Obama gives serious commitment to investigating criminal activity in the Bush White House, he will greatly increase the odds I will vote for him. But, he wants to be a uniter and that probably entails glossing over most of the illegal activity or going after smaller potatoes than those at the top of the administration. Also, Bush will most likely strategically hand out pardons, as he did with Scooter Libby, that will help prevent investigation of his activities the way his father did at the end of his term regarding his participation in the Iran Contra affair.

It’s enough to make me want to win the lottery and buy an island in the South Pacific on which to live and wear a sarong for the rest of my days.

You know what else makes me want to go native among palm trees? This comment on The Huffington Post:

“In the end, elitist liberals are impotent and embittered by that fact. They cling to fantasies such as prosecuting righteous, upstanding American patriots. They fall back on empty rhetoric such as “I’ll fight for the common man, because they know in their own feeble, prejudiced minds, that they don’t have the courage to fight anything evil or anything with the capacity to fight back.

They denigrate core beliefs such as Christianity, because they are empty vessels, devoid of any faith other than weak dependence on the wished-for power of twisted liberal government to FORCE their will upon those made of real and stronger stuff. They are deathly afraid of true faith because they have none. They are terrified of tools such as guns because they generally don’t know how to use them to feed themselves and are too afraid to use them to defend themselves.

They are everything in reverse that Obama tried and failed to heap disdain upon with his elitist mumblings in San Fran. No, we know who they are and what they lack; and they know we know, and that’s what really destroys them.”

To which I responded, complete with typos:

“wow. you are seriously living in fantasy-land. and your one-sided, close-mindedness makes me shudder because your zeal presents you prime meat for the those politicians who would take advantage of your brainwashed, sheep-like desire to follow and believe the lies you are fed.

Committing torture does not make you a patriot. It makes you an immoral hypocrite.

We have faith. Faith in reason, logic, common sense. Not unfounded fairytales only constructed as a tool to control. It is a good thing to question everything. And I’m not deathly afraid of anything except profound ignorance.

And I’m from Texas, honey. I KNOW how to use a gun.

Remember, discussion and debate is always a good thing. No one is right on ALL the issues and when you are certain you are right and no one else, it is time to retire. For your mind is petrified, you can progress no more and are no longer useful.”

I should proofread, I know, I know…

Recommendation: Documentary “Bush’s Brain”

Not too long ago, I decided to rent the documentary “Bush’s Brain” - a documentary version of the book taking look at the political history of Karl Rove. Being from Texas, I was curious about his involvement with the Bushes before the fatal 2000 election. I suppose I could search for a more objective book on the subject, but I just don’t think I could stomach the time spent absorbing information on this slimy Repub dough-boy.

This documentary was short and sweet, if a little one-sided. They did have a couple interviewees who weakly offered a bit of defense of Karl, but overall, camera-time was given with those who might harbor grudges. One as to ask themselves, however, if they could NOT hold a grudge after interacting with Karl Rove. The morally defunct strategist gives a new meaning to the word “ruthless”. Even if I were Republican, I’d be wary of hitching my star to his wagon. Because when Karma pulls his card, it’s going to be ugly. We’re talking apocalyptic universal nastiness heading his way - maybe not in this life, but if he’s reborn a dung beetle, let’s just say I wouldn’t be surprised.

Overall, I think Karl Rove, Ann Coulter and Rush Limbaugh were probably the pimply, picked-on loners in their youth who had little friends better than their right hand. Instead of forming the trench-coat mafia and taking their anger out on innocent peer bystanders, they’ve fed their anger, festered and finally decided to utilize their entire adulthoods to attack reason and common sense on the political playing field, amassing their power by preying on the mindless masses who establish the right-wing Republican and Christian Conservative groups. They’re the strangers with candy to these church-goers who are continually, falsely convinced their lifestyles and livelihoods alike are at risk if they don’t fall in line and fill out those straight-ticket ballots. The gays will ruin marriage worse than Britney Spears or Liz Taylor! The guvnmint will force yer chiren to have unmarried relations! Them raggedy mooslims will steal yer pictures of jeezus off the walls of yer livin rooms! Praise Bush!

Just Finished My 2007 Taxes!! Woohooo!

I just finished my taxes and feel excellent. It’s beertime, fo’ sho’!

And let me just say that I’m sooooooo happy this Iraq war is costing our household $100 a month. It’s great the the government sees fit to use our hard-earned cash to assign profiteering contracts to favored companies while they try to stop the bleeding in Iraq. How excellent that this military effort has refocused our endeavors away from Afghanistan and Bin Laden and left our military de-moralized and stretched beyond any ability to respond quickly or effectively to an unforeseen event. Magnificently, the Iraqi infrastructure is in shambles, with water and electricity function merely based on hope and luck.

It is just such a privilege for me to contribute my income to one of the biggest military blunders in world history and allow Bush and Cheney to perpetuate the fairy tale that they felt the responsibility to spread U.S.-flavored Democracy to the Middle East. How funny that their culture doesn’t adapt readily to our philosophical governmental institution. ESPECIALLY, since you can barely call U.S. government a functioning democracy.

Ah yes, I have much to be thankful for. Just like all those blessed Iraqis.